New Year, New You – Tips for Saving This Year!

Soooo… What are you going to do different this year, than you did last year? If you’re like the majority of people, every year you make resolutions that you never resolve, right? Join me by yelling at the top of your lungs, NOT THIS YEAR! This year will be different, this year; you will achieve your financial goals! But the question is HOW? Write them down, then you actually revisit them daily, weekly and monthly. As we all know the age-old adage, “That which gets measured, gets done.” I’ve narrowed these down to the “Big 3.”

1. Define the Goal
2. Make it Realistic
3. Execute

What is your actual GOAL? And no, it can’t be “I just want to save money.” How much money do you want to save, where in your budget will you cut the costs? Why do you need to save this amount of money? These are the questions you have to ask yourself.

Make it REALISTIC. One of the biggest pitfalls in goal setting is planning goals that you’ll never be able to achieve. The most common New Year’s resolutions from my clients and friends are: I’m going to lose weight and/or save more money. But the question is, how much weight and how much money. Find the places you can trim your budget, limit your eating out, unnecessary cable channels, limit monthly subscriptions and cancel memberships for clubs, groups, etc. if you find that you don’t use them regularly. Go to the library instead of buying books for leisure reading (how often do you actually re-read a book). A great rule of thumb is to try and save 10 percent of what you bring home after all taxes and deductions, also known as your net income. But to get started work on 5 percent. Heck, start with $100 a month, whatever it takes to get started.

Lastly, EXECUTE! Quit putting off until tomorrow what you can start today. Start by opening an interest-bearing account specifically for your savings and I recommend that you don’t link the account to your daily account nor have an ATM card. I would even go so far as to suggest a completely different financial institution. The reason for the separation is to curb your temptations. How hard is it to lose weight if you have a refrigerator full of ice cream and cabinet full of cookies, pretty hard, huh? So don’t temp yourself. Good luck and happy new you!